No Good Deed
by malcolm lake
Summary: Spoilers through Comeback.  A celebration in glee club has unintended consequences. Ensemble piece but the main incident involves Artie
1. Chapter 1

Spoilers through Comeback. A celebration in glee club has unintended consequences Ensemble piece but the main incident involves Artie.

No Good Deed

_Author's note: I don't own any Glee characters. Let's pause while you recover from the shock. Done now? Okay. This is my return to fan fiction after working on a novel and life stuff. I will return to my on-going Buffy stories, starting with Higher Education and Abandoned Buildings, but it's awfully long and I have to reread it myself as I try to remember how to write other people's characters. So I decided to start with a show I'm enjoying now. Hope it doesn't suck_

Will Schuester sighed as the afternoon's glee club rehearsal ended. Regionals were coming up, Sue was coaching his competition, and his kids were not in a good place. There were too many divisions; Rachel seemed to be pouting, Finn was avoiding the diva, Quinn was staring daggers at Sam and Santana, which was upsetting Brittany, which meant that Artie was spending more time trying to comfort her than paying attention to his number with Mercedes. Mike and Tina were in their own world and Lauren, although trying her best, wasn't a natural performer. It was a sad day when Puck was the most attentive person in the club.

Glee club needed a change. _"Maybe they'd like to feel more involved,"_ he thought. "Hey guys!" Will called out, "I think we need to try something new for Regionals." That got almost everyone's attention. Quinn was still staring at Sam, but eleven out of twelve was an improvement. "Tomorrow I'd like to see how Rachel would like to stage our first number." Seeing Santana, Mercedes, and Tina start to protest, he quickly added, "We'll let Mercedes try on Friday and anyone else can have a turn next week. Who knows, maybe we can find a winning number."

Rachel had found a notebook and was jotting things down already. Mercedes was smiling and Brittany and Santana were talking to Artie about a number. Will smiled as he looked at the students. _"Yeah," he thought, "this will be good for them."_

Finn walked over to Artie. "Have you finished, you know, the thing?"

Artie wheeled away from Santana and Brittany and told the quarterback, "I'll send it to Coach tonight," he promised. Finn nodded and left.

"What was Frankenteen talking about?" Santana asked.

Artie was evasive, "It's for tomorrow, a video that coach Beiste wanted."

"Something with burly men who know how to treat ladies right?" Santana guessed.

"Uh, no," Artie quickly countered, not wanting to go follow that train of thought. "It's kind of a surprise." He looked over to Brittany. "Is it okay if we leave it for now? I kind of promised not to tell anyone."

Santana knew that if she pressed, Brittany would get interested and Artie would cave. She would have never thought that Artie Abrams of all people would be the person who cared for Brittany almost as much as she did. It made her happy and uneasy at the same time. Still, she's told him on no uncertain terms that, if he hurt Brit again all that would be left of him was "a pile of ugly sweaters and two wheels."

Still, the video sounded boring. Besides, why stir up trouble here when there were so many other people to mess with? She shrugged and left to take Brittany to motocross practice.

One person was interested in what Artie was doing, Lauren Zizes.

Lauren was head of the AV club, and like everything she did, she took her responsibility seriously. So she waited a few minutes then snuck up to the AV room. Artie was editing video files. She looked over his shoulder and he looked back at her, shrugged, and continued.

It was footage of the championship football game. Seeing she wasn't leaving, Artie explained, "Finn suggested that since the only reason we were able to play the game was the help of the girls in glee that you should all be given letterman's jackets. Coach thought it was a great idea, and I'm making a video to go with the jackets. She insisted it be G-rated, so we don't get into any trouble." Noting Lauren's frown, he added, "We know you already have a jacket for wrestling." Though they had known each other for years, he was always a little afraid of the Lauren.

Something didn't seem right to her. "How did you get so many angles? Normally we only have one or two guys taping, but you have six video files."

Artie chuckled. "Puck set it up. He asked me to get extra video guys."

"Why."

"We didn't want Rachel, Mercedes, or Tina to get hurt," Artie explained. "We told the guys on the other team before the game that the girls would be falling down as soon as the ball was snapped and that we'd be taping them every play. If they stepped on them, or did anything to hurt them, we'd post the video and they'd be known as creeps who beat up girls and probably wouldn't have sex until college." Lauren laughed. "Plus, Mike said that he knew six Asian poisons that couldn't be detected by modern science and he'd be happy to use them if anybody touched Tina."

Artie inserted a shot focused on Lauren. "What about the camera on me?" Her voice had taken on an ominous tone.

Artie shrank down in his wheelchair. "Puck told the other team that he'd be videoing you destroying them on each play and that he'd take it home to enjoy later." He waited for Lauren to punch him, but she only said, "Good."

Lauren laughed again when she saw the rapid repeats of Rachel, Mercedes, and Tina falling down, all set to a cover of Michael Jackson's "Beat it" by Fall Out Boy.

"Some of the guys kind of lost attention as the game went on," she noticed as Artie continued to piece the video together.

"Yeah, the only guy who caught each play was Jacob. He was taping Rachel." Artie cringed. "I really don't want to think about that too much."

"Yeah," Lauren agreed.

Artie came to the play where Tina recovered the fumble. He checked between all of the angles and put together a three-camera cut that focused on her eyes as she ran. He processed it in slow motion and set it to R Kelly's "I Believe I Can fly,' ending it with a gong sound when she was tackled. He checked the video and found a tight shot of Mike's concerned face as she was on the ground. "They'll like that," he said, as if trying to convince himself.

"What about this shot?" Lauren said, reaching over Artie's shoulder to Jacob's video. He'd stopped perving on Rachel long enough to focus on Artie's breathless reaction as he stared at his former girlfriend.

"Overkill," Artie mumbled. "We don't want it to look like she died or anything."

"_Yeah, right,"_ Lauren thought. "_You don't want her to think you might have feelings for her."_ "I think it's a good shot of you," she persisted.

"It's for the girls, not me," Artie replied. There was only a little footage left before the half ended, so Artie added a brief montage from the halftime show and Finn's winning play, followed by Rachel close ups courtesy of Jacob, including one of her spitting on the sidelines. That, he thought, was the perfect way to end the video.

"I want to watch it before you send it to Coach Beiste," Lauren said. "I have to make sure it makes the AV club look good."

Artie looked dubious, but she was in charge, so there really wasn't anything he could do. "Sure. I'll need it tomorrow, though."

"No problem," Lauren said. "I'll just make sure Puckerman has something to worth watching."

That seemed to calm Artie, "The part where you made that guy cry is at the two minute mark," Artie said as he trundled off.

Lauren watched the video and was impressed. Artie had done a good job. She took out one shot where two guys had double teamed her and knocked her over. Artie had immediately followed it with shots of her nailing both guys, but it was the principal of the thing. That left the video about four seconds shorter than Artie's original cut. She found the shot of Artie while Tina was hurt and added that, which exactly made up for the missing shot. She thought Tina would like to know that Artie was concerned.

She forwarded the video file to Coach Beiste and texted Artie that she had sent the file. Said it was her good deed for the day. Then she edited together a quick video of Puck from the game footage and put it on her flash drive. It seemed only fair.

Sam and Santana were lying in the former cheerleader's bed, trying to catch their breath. "Not bad for a rookie," Santana quipped as she pulled her hair back into a ponytail. "Definitely better than Finn," she was sure to add. She saw Sam's reaction and smiled. _"Yes, this is so much more fun than some video,"_ she thought.

"That was…" Sam tried to think of the words but nothing came to mind.

Santana laughed. "You play video games right?"

"Yeah," Sam managed, not sure where this was heading.

"Well you just gots a new one, Call of Bootie, and you just cleared level 1. And it only gets better from here." She bent down to kiss him. She loved the look of adoration he gave her, and wanted to make him happy as well. _"Besides, this should make sure that he never looks at Quinn again," _she thought.

Rachel tore another sheet out of her notebook, balled it up, and threw it into the trashcan by her desk. It just didn't work. She knew what she wanted, a sad duet from two of the other glee kids (maybe Tina and Puck) leading into the anthem she would compose, with herself as the lead singer. Until she finished her song she would have something inferior as a placeholder; probably the Beatles _Hey Jude _(the rest of the team could join in during the Nah Nah Nahs so they would feel included).

The problem was that she needed to be framed by the others at the end of the performance, and there just weren't enough guys. She would be in the center of course, and there had to be five couples around her. Artie was the problem. Sitting in his wheelchair he was even shorter than her and it would throw off the composition. Maybe she could put him with the band, playing guitar. Mercedes would help with the chorus, so she would be off to the left, opposite the band. Lauren didn't match well with the other guys, so she could stand beside Mercedes. Brittany and Mike and Tina and Puck could handle the dancing during the chorus, which left Sam and Santana and Finn and Quinn – Wait, no she wasn't going to let that happen.

So there would be Quinn and Sam and Santana and – That wouldn't work either. Okay, Lauren and Finn and Sam and Santana. That left Quinn beside Mercedes, or standing alone behind Rachel, neither of which helped create a balanced five-point star with her at the center. Maybe Santana or Quinn could get one of the former guy Cheerios to join for the performance. It's not like they had anything else to do. She allowed herself a brief smile at the demise of the Cheerios. Not that she was celebrating the misfortunes of others; just that apparently karma did exist and she was in this rare case the beneficiary.

Yeah, a new guy would help. Maybe it would even improve Quinn's mood if another guy were on the team. _"That would work,"_ Rachel said to herself, _"I'm doing this for her."_

Finn and Puck had slowly rebuilt their friendship since the championship game. Currently they were sitting in new Hummel-Hudson house, playing video games while Kurt did his homework. Artie had come over with Puck, and he was checking the latter's geometry homework to make sure his tutoring was paying off.

"You're sure you can't cut class at Dalton tomorrow?" Artie asked Kurt.

"Given how much money my dad and Carole are spending, no," Kurt sighed.

"But the girls would totally love it if you saw them get their lettermen's jackets," Finn persisted. We're doing it at glee practice after school. You'd just have to cut out during last period."

"I'll see," was as far as Kurt was willing to go. He didn't want to go back, not as long as Karosfsky was there, but he was enjoying this. Finally hearing something about glee from the guys, not just bits and pieces from Rachel or Mercedes.

Artie's cell went off, "Lauren sent the video to Coach," he told Finn and Puck.

"Great," Puck said not bothering to look up from the video game. "So, after I finish schooling Finnster, what do you guys want to do?"

Artie's cell went off again. It was Brittany. "Hey B," he said.

"Hey Brittany," the guys chorused.

"Puck, Finn, and Kurt say 'hi.'" Artie dutifully relayed. "How did motocross go?" Kurt listened in, privately amused at Artie's change in attitude as he talked to his girlfriend. He noted a blush on his friend's cheek at something the former cheerleader said. "Babe, I know you bought it for me and I really like it, it's just…" "Sure, you're right. It'll go with that. I'll wear it tomorrow. Okay, I'll meet you by your locker tomorrow morning. Love you, bye."

"Awww" Finn and Puck called out as he hung up the phone. Artie picked up a cushion from the couch and threw it at them.

"What was that all about?" Kurt quietly asked. He didn't want to make Artie uncomfortable, but this sounded perilously close to good gossip.

"Brittany bought me a sweater and she wants me to wear it tomorrow," Artie explained.

"So, all of your sweaters are horrid," Kurt replied. "What's the problem?"

"I'm pretty sure Mercedes will send you a picture tomorrow, so you'll see for yourself," Artie groaned.

"Then why are you doing it?"

"Because she wants me to," Artie admitted, his earlier gloom lifting immediately. "It'll make her happy, and there's almost nothing I wouldn't do to make her happy." His voice dropped, "as tomorrow will show."

Puck nudged Finn, "My boy is whipped," he said pointing over to Artie.

Finn smile at the comment quickly faded. "But at least he has a girlfriend."

"Hey, it's just a matter of time with Lauren," Puck said with only a hint of uncertainty in his voice.

"Well, you're doing better that I am with Quinn. She's moping around staring at Sam. I don't understand it," the quarterback grumbled.

Puck shrugged. "Look, I know the last thing you want is me talking about is Quinn, but my baby momma has been through a lot. She lost the Cheerios and her boyfriend in a couple of weeks. That's gotta be tough."

"So you're saying I should wait?" Finn asked.

"I'm saying maybe she needs a friend," Puck clarified.

Burt Hummel arrived from work and saw the boys gathered around the television. It was nice to see Kurt with friends.

"Long day, dad" Kurt noted.

"Inventory week. It's always a pain in the rear." He smiled at a memory. "Especially since I don't have my assistant checking off items for me anymore."

"Sorry dad, since I've been at Dalton the homework…"

"Hey, don't worry about it. Carole and I are proud of what you're doing there. I just miss you sometimes," he sighed, tousling his son's hair to his oh-so-obvious displeasure.

The other boys laughed; none of them, not even Puck, dared to muss the fabled Hummel hairdo.

The next morning, Artie put his jacket in his locker, pulled out a stopwatch and started it, and began wheeling over to Brittany's locker. He placed the watch on his lap and five seconds later heard the first laugh. Not that he blamed the girl. He was wearing a yellow sweater with ducks on it; courtesy of his girlfriend. And not just ducks, but smiling little chicks. Normally Brittany had great taste, except in this one area. Ducks were her fashion kryptonite.

At twenty seconds, he heard a cell camera snap and looked up to see Mercedes. Puck came by at fifty seconds and said, "If you weren't my bud now, you would totally be duct-taped to the flagpole for wearing that," he laughed, shaking his head. "Brittany?" Puck asked. Artie nodded. "Sorry dude," Puck slapped Artie on the shoulder. "I gotta run. Got the strangest text from Lauren last night."

At one minute fifty seconds he got a text from Kurt, giving his outfit 4 Urkels, the worst rating on his friend's scale of horrible outfits Artie had worn.

Karofsky shoved him into a locker at two minutes.

At three minutes, he saw Brittany by her locker, wearing a matching silly duck sweater that looked so much better on her. She looked up and smiled at him. And all of the embarrassment was worth it. Even the slushie he got from one of the hockey guys after fourth period. At least after that he had a reason to change out of the sweater.

Quinn stopped by her locker and absentmindedly put away her jacket and grabbed a notebook.

'Hey," Finn called to her. When she looked over at him, he asked, "Would you mind helping me with the Geometry? I don't know what I did wrong, but I'm pretty sure you that the sum of the angles in a triangle isn't 4,000 degrees."

"Sure," Quinn said. "Let's take a look at it." She smiled as they walked to class.

At lunch Will was sitting with Coach Beiste when Sue stopped in front of their table. "Sorry Will, can't stay long, the toxic chemicals coming off your hair might singe my eyebrows, but I just wanted to give you a few details about how Aural Intensity is going to destroy your gang of hopeless losers at Regionals."

Coach Beiste looked up at Sue and said mildly, "I don't think you wanna do that."

"Who asked you, She-Hulk?" Sue said, staring at the football coach.

Coach just smiled and continued, "Well, I found the show choir rulebook online, and it says that attempts made by a coach to intimidate, harass, or otherwise impair another choir from performing are subject to that coach's suspension pending a ruling by the board. Since we're only a few weeks from the Regionals, if Will files a complaint, your team would have to forfeit, since the board only meets every six months."

Sue stared blankly at the football coach.

Will's grin was even broader than Coach Beiste's. "So you're saying that Sue can't come by the choir room, the auditorium, or my office, conducting verbal drive-bys?"

"I'm not saying it, the rulebook is. You really should read it, Will. Rules are our friends. Without them we're just a cow pie in flapjacks."

Sue groaned and fled, kicking open the door to the teacher's lounge. Just when she'd found a reason to live she was being forced to leave Will and the glee club alone.

At three, everyone assembled for glee club practice. Kurt hadn't been able to make it, but everyone else was there, and Coach Beiste was sitting on Will's desk with a computer and projector hooked up and a box that Finn assumed contained the lettermen's jackets. He was sitting on the top row of chairs beside Quinn. Puck and Lauren were sitting together, as were Brittany, Santana, and Sam. Mercedes was sitting on the front row beside Artie, next to Tina and Mike. Rachel was sitting beside Mike.

"Okay guys," Will called out. "Coach Beiste has a presentation to make."

"Coach!" the guys called out.

"Shut it!" coach replied with a smile on her face. This was why she taught high school. Feeling the love and respect from the kids, knowing she was having a positive impact on their lives, it made it all worthwhile.

"Three weeks ago, we almost lost out on the chance to play in McKinley High's first championship football game in 20 years. Four young ladies stepped in and saved our Malibu classics from the fire irons." Puck and Finn shared a puzzled look. Maybe one day they'd understand coach.

"I wanted to thank you ladies for signing up, so we have a little video that Artie put together." She smiled at the young man in the wheelchair.

The video started and soon everyone was laughing. The girls each had an intro piece, and received applause from the others as their names, "Rowdy Rachel, Maulin' Mercedes, Touchdown Tina, and Lethal Lauren," appeared. The video ran exactly four minutes, as Artie had originally intended, but he looked over to Lauren when he noted a missing shot. She smiled back at him and he began to get nervous. "_What other changes had she made?"_

He found out when he saw the shot of him reacting to Tina's injury. Tina looked over at Artie and saw him studiously examining the tile floor. She quickly turned her attention back to the screen.

Fortunately, the rest of the video caught everyone's attention, and they all cheered when Finn scored the winning touchdown and laughed at the closing Rachel shots. A round of applause followed the conclusion of the video.

"I've got lettermen's jackets for each of you," coach said, as she passed out each one. At Finn's suggestion, Rachel's had a small gold star over the M.

"I won't have to borrow yours anymore," Tina said to Mike as she struck a pose. Mike's smile faded just a bit; he liked it when she borrowed his jacket.

"I've also got a jacket for Artie," coach said. The other members applauded as he wheeled forward and put on his jacket, which covered the slushie stains on his shirt.

"Oh," coach said. "One more thing. I posted the video on the school website and emailed your parents so they could see it. Thought they might like to see you in action."

Mercedes and Tina exchanged a look. They were doomed. They had faked their parent's signatures. Mercedes checked her phone. Yep, her parents had already left a text, "You are in so much trouble young lady."

"Thanks coach," Will said. "Okay guys, we need to get started. Rachel, I think you have something to show us?"

Rachel smiled and suggested they go to the auditorium.

She positioned everyone and said, "Okay, here's what I want for the finale." She paused, hoping this wouldn't be too awkward. "Quinn, could you or Santana ask the guy Cheerios if one of them could join us, just to stand and dance for the number?" 

"Why don't we just let Artie sing beside me" Quinn asked.

"It's a symmetry thing," Rachel explained. "Artie is too short in his chair. We can't see him behind me and it would be distracting to the audience. It would look like you don't have a partner."

"But Artie's one of our best singers," Quinn persisted.

"And he'll be on stage with the band," Rachel said, not seeing the problem. "And let's face it, dancing isn't something he can do and our one advantage over the Warblers during Sectionals was our choreography."

The others looked over at Artie, sitting in his chair off to the side of the stage. "She's right," he shrugged, not wanting to make a scene.

"This isn't cool," Puck said.

Brittany frowned and looked over to Santana. "Listen dwarf," the Latina said, "You're just afraid someone might take their eyes off of you for one second and see him. You're pathetic." It took seconds for things to descend into an argument and Rachel stormed off.

"_So much for team unity,"_ Will sighed.

By the next morning, it seemed everyone at the high school had seen the video. Lauren lost count of how many times she was called "Lethal."

Tina met Mercedes in front of her locker. "How long?" She asked.

"I'm grounded for three weeks and I have to make a formal apology to my parents at church this Sunday," Mercedes answered. "How about you?"

"Grounded till prom unless it's a school function," Tina sighed. "At least I can still do glee club."

"Same here," Mercedes said. "Speaking of, I was thinking about my number today. I hate to say it, but I like Rachel's idea about the dancers."

"What about Artie?" Tina asked.

"Please, like I'd stick my boy in a corner. He'll be up there with you if you want. Or we can give him to Quinn."

"I'd like him for a partner," Tina said. They'd always been friends and since Artie had been dating Brittany they'd regained some of their closeness. She noticed the look on Mercedes' face and quickly added, "I've danced with him a lot, it'll be easier for him."

"Right," Mercedes agreed with a smirk.

Tina ignored her friend's innuendo. "You know, last year I thought of this move where Artie turned his chair and I jumped over his knees. We could be doing that while Mike does an old-school breakdance spin and Brittany jumps over Mike's knees."

"That would be a pretty high jump for you. Maybe we should let Brittany…"

"I can do it," Tina insisted, ignoring another smirk from Mercedes.

Finn was standing by his locker waiting for Quinn when he saw Rachel. She was wearing her lettermen's jacket, which was decorated with dozens of iron-on gold stars.

"Rachel," he hissed, trying to keep from attracting attention as he dropped his jacket over hers.

"What's wrong?" she asked, not understanding his behavior_. "Is he trying to get back together with me?"_ she wondered, allowing her body to lean into his.

"You don't put stuff on a lettermen's jacket," he quietly tried to explain. "If the guys on the football team see it, it'll be like you're making fun of them."

"Oh, so I should be worried about offending the guys who drove Kurt away and harass us on a daily basis." She shrugged off his jacket and elbowed him away from her.

"Yes," Finn said. "If you want to keep things from getting worse."

"Well, things will get better after today, regardless," she breezed.

"Why"

"Because I got a call from the local news last night. Since I'm the star of glee club as well as the video, they want to interview me…and maybe the other girls," she added as an afterthought. They're dropping by after school and with luck the interview will be on the news tonight. This will be the first of many interviews I'll have in my career, so I need to be ready. They might show it years from now during my lifetime achievement award." Finn sighed, he knew that look; she was already lost in her dreams. He only hoped none of the other football players saw…_and here's Karofsky_.

The burly footballer took one look at Rachel's jacket and pushed Finn and Rachel into the lockers. "What are you guys thinking," Karofsky yelled. Fortunately Puck and Sam were around and were able to break up the fight. The bell rang and Finn went to class, still hearing Karofsky grumble.

During the last class of the day, Karofsky was in French and one of the hockey players came up to him after the bell. "Saw the football video last night," he snickered.

"Yeah," Karofsky muttered as he gathered his books.

"Last year you had a gay kid on the team and this year it's a wheelchair kid, little girls and halftime shows," mullet #3 noted.

"We won the championship."

"Nobody's gonna remember that. They're just going to remember a bunch of girls falling down and you guys dancing around like idiots. Maybe you should sew stars on your lettermen's jacket, too."

"At least we'll be remembered for something. And none of us are taking French so we can try to sound Canadian." He shoved the guy, then noticed there were three other hockey players still hanging around.

"Oh, you're getting mad. I better watch out or you might start singing us show tune. Maybe we should just kiss and make up," he laughed as he and the other hockey guys left the classroom. Karofsky was shaking from anger. He closed the door trying to calm down.

Artie was wearing his lettermen's jacket as he waited for Brittany to come by his locker so they could go to glee club practice. She and Santana walked up to him and he could see his girlfriend was upset.

"I lost my keys," she said.

Artie tried to calm her. "Okay, we know you had them this morning,"

"Why?" she asked.

"You drove me to school," Artie reminded her. "So, do you remember seeing them anywhere?"

"I think I had them in biology at fourth period." She replied.

"That's a start," Artie said. "You guys check the bathrooms and I'll go upstairs to the biology lab."

Santana smiled at Artie. "I have a spare set of her keys at home if we need them," she said.

"Good to know," Artie replied. "I'll have to do that. Be right back," he assured Brittany as he rolled to the handicapped elevator.

Artie looked around the biology lab and saw a set of keys on the front desk. "Yes!" he celebrated. They were Brittany's; the tell-tale pink "B" charm confirmed it. He turned and wheeled out of class

Karofsky had just pulled himself together and opened the door when he saw wheelchair kid rolling down the hall to the handicapped elevator. In a football player's lettermen's jacket. The same guy who was wearing a duck sweater yesterday. These glee idiots had ruined the one thing he'd been working for all year. It was so unfair. He literally saw red as he ran forward and without thinking pushed Artie from the lift to the stairwell and launched him downward. Artie's head hit the cement wall and blood splattered against the wall as he and the chair clattered down the stairs.


	2. Chapter 2

_Author's note: Thanks to everyone who read and reviewed. I didn't want to leave the cliffhanger too long, so here's the rest of the story. Hope it's okay - ml_

Brittany, Santana, Sam, Mike, and Tina were waiting outside the choir room when they heard the crash. They ran to see Artie lying at the foot of the stairs, face down. Blood stained the stairs and he wasn't moving. Brittany ran to her boyfriend and started to turn him over. "Artie," She whispered.

"Don't!" Tina shouted as she came up on the other side of Artie. "He could have a broken neck."

"He's already para…" Sam started.

"Only from the waist down," Tina cut in. "If his neck is broken he could lose the use of his arms or even worse." She tentatively touched Artie's neck. "He still has a pulse." She checked more closely. "He's breathing," she said, letting out a visible sigh of relief.

Santana called 911. Finn and Puck arrived, as did Mercedes and Quinn. "There's been an accident at McKinley High," she stated.

"It's no accident," Tina snarled. "Artie wouldn't go near the stairwell. Somebody did this to him." Puck exchanged a guilty look with Finn. He'd never actually pushed Artie down the stairs, but he had threatened to do so on a couple occasions.

Brittany looked helplessly at Artie as Tina told people what needed to be done. The former cheerleader looked over to Mike and said softly, "I need his book bag." Mike nodded and walked up the stairs. The book bag was in the landing. As he looked up, he saw Karofsky, who was blindly staring downward. Karofsky saw Mike and quickly backed away.

Santana told Tina, "There's an ambulance coming and the police will be here soon." Mr. Schuester, Lauren, and Emma arrived and Santana told them what had happened, as far as they knew.

Mike gave Artie's book bag to Brittany and looked over at his girlfriend. She had done all that she knew how to do and now the reality of the situation was hitting her. She started crying. Quinn comforted her while Santana moved to Brittany's side. The blonde was clutching Artie's book bag to her chest and sobbing.

"Sanny, he has to be okay," Brittany whispered as Santana hugged her friend.

xxxx

Rachel Berry was on the football field taping her interview with the local news. "I'm sorry that Tina and Mercedes couldn't make it," she said. "They're shy." She added to herself, _"And they didn't know about the interview."_

"So what made you and the other girls want to join the football team?" the reporter asked.

"Well, several of our glee club teammates are also on the team, and when they needed us, we felt that we had to help out. There's an old Broadway axiom that the show must go on."

"That's great," the reporter said, happy to have such a willing interview. "And you performed during halftime as well."

"We members of the glee club pride ourselves in being versatile," Rachel breezed.

"And now you have a story to tell your grandchildren."

"I suppose I do," Rachel said, her thoughts briefly returning to Finn, who she was certain would one day be their grandfather.

The reporter nodded, waited a moment, and said, "cut."

"Was there anything wrong?" Rachel asked.

"No, that's all we need. We'll cut it with segments from the video that Coach Beiste posted. We just wanted something as a lead in."

"Oh," Rachel said, clearly disappointed. "Well, maybe we can talk again after the glee club wins Regionals,"

"Maybe," the reporter said, clearly not enthusiastically. "We generally don't cover glee clubs, but we'll see."

Rachel was about to explain how unique McKinley's glee club was when she heard the sound of sirens approaching the high school.

"Sounds like they're coming here," the reporter said with a gleam in her eye. She and the cameraman hurried towards the noise. Rachel slowly followed, wondering what was happening.

xxxx

The paramedics arrived and told everyone to back away from Artie. The policemen were right behind the paramedics and Finn and Mercedes told them what they thought had happened. Puck avoided the cops and stayed near Artie.

"He's in a wheelchair and we think somebody pushed him," Finn said. The policeman walked up the stairs and pointed to chest-level stains just below the top of the stairwell. "I think you kids were right," one policeman told Finn. "There's no way somebody in a wheelchair hits the wall like this without help."

Meanwhile, the paramedics had placed Artie on a stretcher. "I want to go with him," Brittany and Tina said at the same time.

Tina angrily said, "Brittany, I know the medications Artie takes. Do you? We have things to tell the doctors so they can take care of him and you…" She stopped herself, aware her emotions were getting out of control.

Brittany reached into Artie's book bag and pulled out a plastic container with ducks on it and handed it to the paramedics. "He takes a lot of pills. And she's right, I don't know the names. But I gave him this, so he wouldn't forget to take them." It was a pill case that held a week's worth of medication. "It's only Thursday, so Friday's pills are still there."

The paramedic looked at the pills and smiled at the former cheerleader. "That's all we need to know," he assured her and turned to Tina. "We'll take good care of him."

Tina saw Mike staring at her. He'd clearly gotten the wrong idea. "Okay, Brittany you go ahead and ride with Artie." Brittany nodded a thank you to Tina and hurried off with the paramedics still clutching the book bag.

Santana grabbed Tina's shoulder. "Come on, you can ride with me to the hospital." Tina followed, not wanting to have to deal with explaining things to Mike. The policemen asked the others to stay and provide statements.

Sue arrived as the paramedics were removing Artie. "What's going on?"

"Don't you know?" Will asked.

"What are you talking about?"

Will was blunt, "One of my kids from glee club was pushed down the stairs. Did you have anything to do with it?"

Sue's eyes went wide, "William I would never…"

"Sue, you pushed Tina into the lockers last week. You tried to fire Brittany out of a cannon…"

"I think you better come with us," the policeman told the cheerleading coach.

xxxx

Santana was silent as she drove Tina to the hospital. Tina knew she had to say something, but it was hard to find the words. Finally she managed, "It's not what you think."

"And what do I think," Santana mocked.

"That I'm in love with Artie."

"Of course you are," Santana replied.

"I love Mike."

"That doesn't matter," Santana assured her. When Tina tried to argue, Santana continued. "Look, you two have a connection. Just like me and Brit. For us, they're the person we…" Santana seemed to edit herself before continuing, "they were the persons closest to us when we decided who we were going to be."

Tina thought about what Santana said. So much of what she was now, from her taste in music to joining glee club, had come about because of Artie.

Santana continued, as if talking to herself. "It doesn't matter who we're dating or if we're fighting, or even who we might end up marrying one day, that's always going to be there."

Tina sighed. "I don't know why I bother. It's not we hang out or…."

"Did you not see the video? What he looked like after you were tackled?" Santana asked. "And remember last week when somebody flattened the tires on Coach Sylvester's Le Car? How they said she tore up the teacher's lounge?"

"Yeah," Tina said.

"What had she done to you the day before?"

"She pushed me into the lockers." Tina remembered.

"Yeah, and Wheels did what he could to get even." Santana replied. "I was the lookout. He'll always care for you, five days or fifty years from now, just like me and Brit."

Tina thought about that for a minute and smiled. She turned back to Santana, "I'm sorry if I yelled at Brittany. I'll apologize when we get to the hospital."

"You better," Santana said. "Look, I know what everyone thinks of Brittany, but when I have a hangover or my family thing gets too real, she's there for me. She'll look after him…if she can."

Tina started thinking again about how Artie hadn't regained consciousness after the accident and how pale he was on the stretcher. She tried to keep from crying again. "He'll be okay, right?" she asked Santana.

Santana paused, as if thinking about the question for the first time. "Sure he will," Santana said. Tina could see that she didn't really believe it. After a few seconds, Santana pulled over and stopped the car.

"What's wrong?" Tina asked.

"I just thought about if he isn't okay," Santana began, her voice shaky. "If I have to explain it to Brittany…If I have to tell her…" Tina reached over and pulled Santana into a hug.

After a few minutes Santana had regained her composure. She put the car back into gear and turned to Tina. "You tell anyone about this, and I will end you," she threatened.

xxxx

One of the policemen took Sue downtown for questioning.

One stayed to tag evidence at the crime scene, while the others went into the choir room. Mercedes sent a quick text to Kurt, telling him Artie had been hurt and was heading for the hospital. She then sent another to her parents, telling them what happened and asking if her grounding could start tomorrow.

xxxx

Rachel followed the reporter and cameraman inside, hoping to talk to them about Regionals. She was sure that if she could explain the situation with the Warblers and Aural Intensity that the reporter would be much more likely to come back after they were victorious. Then she turned the corner and the policeman, the blood, and the broken wheelchair at the foot of the landing.

"What happened?" She asked.

The policeman looked up and shrugged. "Kid in a wheelchair got tossed down the stairs. There are some real sick pups in the world."

Rachel got out her phone. She had muted it for the interview. There were no missed calls or messages. She knew there were no other kids in school in wheelchairs at McKinley this year, but she had to ask anyway. "Do you know who it was?"

"The other kids said his name was Artie."

"Others?"

"Yeah, they're in the choir room, wherever that is."

Stunned, Rachel managed, "I know the way."

xxxx

Mike was sitting in the choir room oblivious to the other surrounding him. He kept thinking about how Tina had acted. He knew Tina cared for Artie, but seeing the evidence up close had rattled the quiet dancer.

"He'll be okay," Finn assured Mike.

"What?" It took Mike a second to understand what Finn meant. "Oh, yeah. I'm sure he will be."

"So, do you think Coach Sylvester did it?" Mercedes asked.

One of the policemen looked up from his paperwork.

Mike suddenly realized he hadn't told anyone what he's seen. He had been so distracted by Tina's reaction that…Then he realized something else. Part of him didn't want to tell them. That frightened him almost as much as Tina's behavior did. He swallowed and took a deep breath. "Guys, I think it was Karofsky. When I got Artie's book bag off the stairs, I saw him looking down the staircase.

"Son, why didn't you tell us that earlier?" the policeman asked loudly. Before Mike could answer, the policeman continued. "So, who is this Karofsky."

Finn answered for Mike. "He's a football player. He's a big guy and he's picked on all of us. He got suspended for threatening one of our teammates. Made him transfer."

The policeman turned to Will. "Do you have any information on him? Phone number? Address?

"I think I can find the information in the office," Will said. "I better call Principal Figgins."

xxxx

Mercedes turned to one of the other policemen. "Can we go to the hospital and find out what's happened to Artie?"

The officer nodded and the kids left the choir room.

xxxx

As they were leaving, Rachel saw them at the exit at the far end of the hallway, but they didn't hear her calls to them before the doors closed behind them.

xxxx

Finn drove Quinn and Mercedes, while Lauren went with Puck. Mike and Sam rode together. Rachel pulled out her phone and dialed Finn, but there was no answer. She tried Puck, and finally Mercedes. Her fellow diva answered.

"Rachel, where were you?" Mercedes asked. "Karofsky pushed Artie down the stairs."

"Is he all right?"

"We don't know. We're heading for the hospital now."

Rachel felt she had to ask, and she felt ashamed as she said, "Can I come?"

"What? Yeah. Of course you should get your rear end over here. And when this is over we'll want to know why you blew off practice."

xxxx

Brittany was crying in the emergency room when Santana and Tina arrived. "What happened, B?" Santana asked, fearing the worst.

"She won't let me see Artie or tell me what's happening!" Brittany sniffled pointing to a young nurse at reception who was talking to one of the guy interns. "And there are all these forms and Artie's mom won't answer her phone."

"It's okay," Tina said. "I can handle the forms. Did you try Artie's dad?" Brittany shook her head. Tina pulled out her phone and explained to Santana, "His mom kind of drinks and"

"No need to continue," Santana sighed.

Tina hit a long-unused number on her contact list. "Hi, Mr. Abrams, it's Tina. Yes, it's been a while. I'm really sorry to call like this, but something happened at school and Artie's in the hospital."

"They won't really tell us anything because we aren't family and..." She listened. "Okay, I'll try."

"Mr. Abrams is out of town. He's asking if you can tell us what Artie's condition is?"

The nurse stopped her conversation and the intern left the area. "I'm sorry, but I can only give out information to the immediate family," she said.

"But Mr. Abrams is on the phone."

"I'm sorry, but I can't be sure of that," the nurse replied, and turned to enter some data off a form.

Santana had seen enough. "Okay, Nurse Ratchett. Listen to me. Either you tell us and Mr. Abrams what's happening with his son or I'll take five minutes out of my day to pick up your little playmate and steal him from you."

"She'll do it," Brittany confirmed. "Easy."

The nurse looked at Santana and opened her mouth, but thought the better of it. "Have Mr. Abrams hold the line," she said. "I'll check with ER."

Tina put the phone on the counter and started filling out the forms while Brittany and Santana waited. Within a minute, the nurse returned. "Artie is in surgery. They're concerned about the trauma to his brain and they told me that they'll give you an update as soon as he's out of surgery, which should be a couple of hours."

"Thanks," Brittany said as Tina relayed the information to Mr. Abrams. Brittany and Santana linked pinkies as they walked back to their chairs and Tina completed the forms as best she could. Within an hour the other kids, Rachel, Kurt, and Blaine had all shown up, as had Mr,. Schuester and Emma.

xxxx

During a quiet moment, Kurt asked Rachel, "What's with the stars on the jacket?"

Rachel stifled a groan. "Not you, too. First Finn, then Karofsky, everyone seems so bent out of shape that…"

"Rachel," Kurt "I was just asking." He turned to Blaine and raised an eyebrow.

Blaine mouthed "Diva."

xxxx

The wait was difficult for all of them. Mrs. Abrams showed up, clearly drunk, and so Will and Emma spent most of their time dealing with her. There were few distractions, only the local television news playing on a loop in the waiting room.

Santana and Sam left to get Brittany and Tina something to drink. Both of the girls had been crying and were probably getting dehydrated. "What do you think will happen?" Sam asked.

"I don't know," Santana hated to admit. "It makes you think, though. I mean, one minute you're here. The next…"

They looked into each other's eyes and hurriedly found an empty room. When they returned, half an hour later, Brittany asked where her soda was.

Quinn looked over at Sam, got up and walked to her former boyfriend. "Your sweatshirt is on backwards," she noted.

Sam smirked at her and shrugged his shoulders.

Kurt got up as well and said, "I remember where the soda machines are from when I was here with my dad." He turned to Quinn, who smiled in agreement.

As they walked, Kurt asked Quinn what happened between her and Sam.

"It was my own fault," Quinn said. "I cheated on this cute, great guy who was willing to make a total fool of himself for me. Now he's with Santana and he's turning into this shallow, sex-obsessed…"

Kurt cut in, "There's a word for that, sweetie. It's called a 'boy.'" They both laughed.

"So what's the story with you and Blaine?" Quinn asked

"Second verse, same as the first. I like a guy who just wants to be friends." They reached the vending area and debated soda choices. They decided that juice and a possible sugar crash might help Tina and Brittany get some sleep tonight.

xxxx

Tina kept sneaking looks over at Mike, who was avoiding her gaze.

"What the hell is that?" Lauren asked. The news was showing the interview with Rachel, cut with sections of Artie's video from the championship game.

Finn looked up, "Hey Rach, you did the interview. Why didn't they want to talk to Tina and Mercedes? Everyone looked over at Rachel.

"Uh, they didn't need much footage. They just wanted a little something for an intro to the video."

"So they only asked for you?"

Rachel knew she couldn't lie. "No, they called me at home and I kind of forgot to tell you guys about it…I did it after class. It was only a few seconds."

"Unbelievable," Santana said. "Artie gets attacked while Man Hands is playing star. Wonderful."

"Guys," Finn cut in, "this is not the time. Let's try not to kill each other before we find out what's happened to Artie."

Things settled down again and Kurt and Quinn returned with drinks for Tina and Brittany.

Shortly after that, the doctor came into the waiting room. "Artie had bleeding on the brain, but we think we were able to stop it and relieve the pressure. We haven't found additional damage, which is positive. He's out of surgery and in intensive care. We'll try to keep you posted, but most likely it will be several hours, probably longer, before we can give you a prognosis as far as his recovery.

"So what do we do now?" Brittany asked.

The doctor tried to offer a sympathetic smile. "I know it'll be hard, but I'd suggest going home. If one of you wants to stay, I can give you updates, but really there isn't much that can be done at this point."

"I'm staying," Brittany insisted.

"Brit, are you sure?" Santana asked. "Like the doctor said, there's nothing we can do now?"

"I need to," Brittany said. "Artie's been there for me. I can do this for him."

"Okay," Santana said sadly. "I'll bring over a change of clothes in the morning. Tina, do you want a lift?"

"I'll take her," Mike said.

Puck elbowed the dancer. "I think us guys need to talk about something." He and Sam headed away from the others with Finn and Mike. Lauren came along also. Kurt and Blaine looked at each other, then got up and joined them.

"We need to find Karosksy," Puck said.

"The police have probably already picked him up." Finn protested.

"I wouldn't bet on it. From what I heard in juvie, the Lima cops don't have a great track record."

"I think we owe it to Artie to look for him," Sam said. The other nodded.

"Who drove?" Finn, Puck, Sam, Kurt, and Blaine raised their hands. "Okay, Kurt, can you and Blaine take home the girls? The rest of us will try to figure out where Karofsky could be.

Kurt thought to protest, but decided against it. He was fairly certain the guys wouldn't be able to find Karofsky, so at least he'd be accomplishing something by taking the girls home. The rest of the guys and Lauren left and Blaine and Kurt returned to the girls.

Will and Emma took Mrs. Abrams home.

Mercedes said that she would keep Brittany company. Quinn said she could ride back with Tina and Mercedes. As they looked around, they saw that Rachel had already left.

"Well, I guess we go home," Kurt shrugged.

As they were leaving, Blaine stopped as they exited the elevator. "Rachel said that Karosky went off on her this morning about the stars on her jacket, right?" Kurt nodded. "Karofsky's a football player, right?"

"Yeah," Kurt said.

Blaine said, "I think I know a place to look for him."

Kurt suppressed a shiver as he said, "Let's go."

xxxx

Blaine and Kurt hopped the fence and walked into the football stadium; there was a lone figure at the center of the field. The full moon was bright enough that he could be easily recognized; it was Karofsky. He would run a few steps, act as if he were throwing a block, then he would run back to the middle of the field. He was sweating heavily in the cold weather; he must have been doing this for hours.

As the two teens approached Karofsky, he noticed them. Kurt was afraid of what the bully might do, but he only yelled, "Call a play."

"What?" Kurt asked.

"Call a play, freak."

Blaine seemed to understand. "Sweep."

"Weak side or strong side?" Karofsky asked.

"Weak side," Blaine clarified.

Karofsky moved into position as if he were waiting the snap of the ball. Suddenly he was in motion. "I make sure the tackle cuts off the end," he wheeled to his right, "I locate the weak side linebacker and kick him out," He threw his body as if making the block." He leapt to his feet. "Another play!"

Blaine called out all of the football plays he knew, until Karofsky lay panting, exhausted on the ground. Cautiously, Blaine and Kurt came closer and sat beside him.

Karofsky tried to explain. "This is the only place where anything makes sense to me anymore," he said. "There's a play, you have your assignment, and you either win or lose that play."

"It's simple," Kurt said.

"Are you kidding?" Karofsky laughed. The sound shook Kurt. "It's hard as hell. Coach would make us run the same play again and again. There are a thousand details to get right. But you can get it right… Not like everywhere else."

Kurt didn't understand what Karofsky was trying to tell him.

"When I was 13, my dad told me, 'David, I know you don't want to go to law school like I did. That's okay. Just do your best, play football, find a nice girl and settle down and I'll be just as proud of you as if you went to Yale. I got it half right."

"Have you told your dad…" Blaine asked.

"Are you kidding? All I can talk to him about is football. That's all he ever asks me about."

"Have you ever mentioned anything else to him?" Blaine asked.

"My dad's not so easy to talk to," Karofsky said. He closed his eyes and rested his head on the ground. "How's wheelchair kid?"

"His name is Artie," Kurt spat back.

"We don't know," Blaine said. "The doctors were working on him when we left. He was unconscious."

"I'm in so much trouble," Karofsky said, opening his eyes and looking over at the two of them. They nodded. "What am I gonna do?"

"Let us take you home," Blaine suggested. "Things can only get worse the longer you stay away."

"I guess."

"And try talking to your dad," Kurt said. "He might surprise you in a good way."

"I think it's too late for that."

xxxx

Kurt was nervous having Karofsky in his car, but the bully seemed different now, somehow less threatening. Still, after they stopped the car and saw Karofsky enter his house, both Kurt and Blaine breathed sighs of relief. They drove back to the hospital so Blaine could pick up his car in the hospital parking lot. Kurt texted Mercedes and found there was still no change in Artie's condition.

"So," Blaine asked, "are you going inside to wait for news about Artie?"

"No, Mercedes will let me know when they tell her anything. I think I'll see how my dad's doing on his inventory, maybe take him a snack."

"I understand. When you hear from Mercedes, let me know," Blaine said as he got back into his car.

xxxx

It was around three in the morning when a nurse came into the waiting room. Mercedes and Brittany were still awake, and looked up as the she approached.

"Just wanted to let you know, "she said with a smile, "Artie woke up"

Brittany hugged Mercedes with relief. "Can we see him?"

"Just for a minute," the nurse said.

The reality of the attack again hit Brittany as she saw Artie in the hospital bed. His forehead and one eye were bandaged, and IVs were inserted into his hand. He didn't have his glasses on so all he saw were two blurs. "Babe?" he asked as he heard her crying.

"Artie I was so scared," Brittany said.

"What happened?" he asked.

"You don't remember?" Brittany asked.

"Not really?" Artie admitted. "I remember being upstairs at school. I found your keys," he told Brittany, as he patted where his shirt pocket should have been and felt the hospital gown. "But I guess I lost my clothes somewhere."

"The keys were in your book bag," Brittany said, remembering why he had been upstairs before glee practice.

"You're kinda blurry," Artie said, "can you come closer?"

"I don't want to," Brittany said, suddenly self conscious. "I've been up all night and…"

"Please?" Artie asked. "Hospitals kinda freak me out. The last time I was here…"

"I know what you mean. Sometimes, my cat totally freaks me out. I think he wants my room for himself."

"Uh, okay," Artie said. His head was pounding and his entire body ached. "I'd just like to have you close for a minute."

Brittany pulled up the chair by the bed and sat beside him. She tentatively reached out her hand and took his. Artie looked even more fragile close up. She saw him wince as he let her extend his arm.

"What's wrong with your arm?'

"It's just all my muscles feel like they've seized up."

"Oh, I know how to handle that," Brittany said, happy to have something to do. She started to rub the muscles in his arm. At first, Artie tensed even more, but within seconds his arm started feeling better.

"Wow," Artie sighed, amazed. "When did you learn to do this?"

"At cheer camp. I have lots of experience bumps and bruises from falling off pyramids."

"But I've never seen you get a step wrong," Artie said.

"Not anymore," Brittany agreed.

"I've had to deal with physical therapists half my life. You should teach them how to do this."

After a few minutes, Artie asked her to stop and as best he could pulled her close to him. When he could finally focus on her face he said, "You are so beautiful." He enjoyed being able to see her again. "I can't believe you stayed."

"Of course I did, you're my boyfriend. I couldn't just leave."

"Thanks. You really are the best girlfriend ever." Brittany pulled his hand to her cheek and kissed it.

Artie noticed the other shape in the room, "Cedes?" He was amazed she'd been quiet for so long.

"You scared us," Mercedes said.

"Sorry, wasn't the intention."

"What did the doctors tell you?"

"They said that I can probably be out of here in a couple days if I'm lucky. And that I shouldn't try to do stairs again any time soon."

Mercedes texted everyone and Brittany sat by Artie's bed holding his hand until the nurse returned and told them they had to leave.

xxxx

Santana came by early the next morning and picked up Mercedes and Brittany so they could go to school. They all sneaked a quick visit with Artie before leaving.

Santana surprised Mercedes by telling Artie, "I hope you feel better,' and kissing his forehead. She didn't hear the former cheerleader whisper to the boy, "If you ever scare Brittany like that again I will cause you so much pain that this will feel like a sunburn." But she smiled as she pulled away from him.

Just after they left, Artie had another visitor. It was Tina, with a spare pair of glasses for him. "I kinda broke into your house," she admitted.

"I won't press charges," Artie said. "Thanks for doing it; I feel helpless enough being here - not being able to see anything on top of that, it's pretty much my recurring nightmare."

"No problem. I know you hate hospitals."

"It brings back a lot of bad memories," Artie admitted. He managed to fit the glasses so he could see out of the eye that wasn't bandaged. "Hey, you're old school Tina today," he said, noting the skull jewelry and black lace gloves.

"Just felt like getting something from the back of the closet today," Tina said. "You look terrible," she said, unable to suppress a giggle of relief at being able to see him at all.

"Thanks," Artie said. "Nice to know the inside and the outside match."

"I'll have to tell Kurt. This might be a first for you"

"Santana says you took care of me after the accident," Artie said. "I really…"

"Hey, I put too much time into being your friend. I'm not letting go of you without a fight."

"I'm glad," Artie said. He looked at the clock. "I know you have to go to school, but maybe you could…or you and Mike could come by tonight? It'd be nice to have someone to talk to."

"I think we can manage it," Tina said, Artie's IV free hand and giving it a squeeze.

xxxx

Puck saw Finn by his locker before school. They had driven all over town the previous evening, but hadn't been able to find Karofsky.

Mike came by and said, "Did you hear? Karofsky turned himself in. Admitted the whole thing."

"That's a relief," Finn said. "Mercedes said Artie couldn't remember what Karofsky did, so at least we won't have a trial to deal with."

"So, you think that means Kurt will come back?" Puck asked.

Up ahead of them in the hall, Mullet#3 slushied Rachel.

"Not really sure about that," Finn admitted. Finn and Puck went forward to help Rachel.

"I'm surprised the two of you are speaking to me today," Rachel said.

Puck said, "Look, yesterday was about what happened to Artie, not you being a b-"

"What he means is that I'm sure everyone will forget about it soon enough," Finn said.

Mercedes passed them in the halls and greeted them, "Puck… Finn…Someone who better stay out of my face for the next two weeks."

"Or not," Finn said.

xxxx

Tina saw Mike just before classes started. "About yesterday…"

Mike cut in, "You were concerned about Artie. I understand."

On one level, Tina was almost disappointed. She wanted to talk about this, to explain. But that wasn't Mike's nature. She realized that in a way, both she and Artie had changed in their new relationships. She was more adaptable to what Mike wanted, and Artie was more attentive and sensitive to Brittany's needs. Maybe they were still shaping each other's lives.

"Asian kiss?" Mike asked.

"Asian kiss," Tina answered.

As they passed a utility closet, Santana and Sam opened the door and emerged, hot and sweaty. Santana shrugged as she passed the two Asians.

xxxx

Meanwhile at the Lima police station. The chief detective was clocking out after an all-nighter. He turned to one of his colleagues and asked. "Did you ever feel like you forgot something."

Meanwhile, in a corner interrogation room, Sue Sylvester shouted, not knowing the room was soundproof. "Somebody let me out of here!"


End file.
